NBA Game Preview - LA Clippers at Atlanta

Mon Nov 19, 2018 7:30 PM EST

The Atlanta Hawks are starting to get healthy. Now the young club needs to discover how to get back in the win column.

The Hawks (3-13) will try to end their seven-game losing streak on Monday when they begin a four-game home stand against the Los Angeles Clippers (10-5) at State Farm Arena.

Atlanta has not won since Nov. 3 when it beat Miami. The Hawks were winless on a four-game road trip that took them to the West Coast, Denver and Indiana. The low point was a 45-point loss to the Nuggets, although Atlanta played better in Saturday's 97-89 loss to the Pacers.

One reason for the improvement was the return of power forward John Collins, a second-year player who averaged 10.5 points and 7.3 rebounds after being the team's first-round draft choice out of Wake Forest in 207. Collins returned from an ankle injury that caused him to miss the first 15 games of the season.

Collins played 12 minutes against the Pacers and totaled 12 points and two rebounds in his return to the court.

"Nice to have him back and we'll be more excited when we can get more minutes out of him," Atlanta coach Lloyd Pierce said. "I thought it was a good start for him."

The Hawks were without Taurean Price for a second straight game with an Achilles injury, but they did get center Dewayne Dedmon back in the lineup.

"It definitely felt good to be out there and also to have John coming back, too," Dedmon said "He played great in his minutes. I wish he could have played more, but he did a great job out there."

The Hawks have good play of late from veteran point guard Jeremy Lin. Over the last five games, Lin is averaging 13.4 points and is shooting .47.8 percent. He's scored in double figures in three straight games.

The Clippers are playing the second of a three-game road trip. They began by winning 127-119 at Brooklyn on Saturday night. Los Angeles has won four straight games - tied for the longest current winning streak -- and six of its last seven.

Clippers reserve Lou Williams will be returning home for his only appearance of the season. The Atlanta native grew up in the suburbs and went straight from South Gwinnett High School to the NBA. He leads the league in bench scoring (19.1 points) and is second in the fourth-quarter scoring (8.2 points). He has averaged 13 points in 23 games against the Hawks, for whom he played for two seasons.

The Clippers trailed for 40 minutes before getting their offense in gear against the Nets. Forward Tobias Harris had a season-high 27 points against the Nets and forward Danilo Gallinari had a career-high 28 points.

"We knew at some point they had to stop shooting the way they were shooting the whole game," Clippers center Marcin Gortat said. "We didn't quit. We didn't fall apart. We took a few punches in the game and we stood up. We are still standing."

The Clippers have won four consecutive against the Hawks, sweeping the series a year ago. Los Angeles has won three straight games in Atlanta. Los Angeles won their most recent meeting108-107 at home on Jan. 8, 2018.